VIDEO: Nittany Lions Set to Shift into Conference Matches

Story By Chelsea Howard, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff WriterUNIVERSITY PARK,
Pa. - With non-conference play behind the women's volleyball team and a week to
refine their skills, the No. 1 ranked team will open up Big Ten conference play
at home against Michigan State on Friday at 7 p.m. and Michigan on Saturday at
7:30 p.m.

Coming off of the
Penn State Classic, the team had a chance to learn from non-conference play
before being matched up against a conference strong in depth. The players took
the opportunity in more relaxed matches to stay focused on their habits.

"We're not just
thinking about the weekend when we play non-conference matches," redshirt
freshman Paulina Prieto Cerame said. "We're thinking about December and how we
want to win a national championship. Since last spring, we've been thinking
about our habits. Whatever habits we have everyday is what's going to affect us
in the long run so creating good habits and staying focused is enough
motivation."

With eight Big Ten
teams ranked in the top 25, the value of each practice and match goes up
requiring the players to be focused on the goals they set at the beginning of
the season.

"There's increased
value in all of the matches, in all of the practices," head coach Russ Rose
said. "Once you get into the Big Ten, what separates the Big Ten teams is all
of the teams have received great commitments from their university, which
resulted in great coaches, challenging facilities, and big crowds on the road."

With the increased
commitment to the sport of volleyball in the Big Ten, some of the players that
Penn State will compete against throughout the rest of the season have taken a recruiting
trip to State College and have seen Rec Hall from a different perspective.

"There's players on
every team that we play that we have recruited," Rose said. "That's probably
the big change. Everybody has players that if they have a good night - they
could win. That's the challenge for every team. We pose the same threats to
other teams. We have some strong players that if they have a good night that
enhances our chance for winning."

Penn State will
face some of the top players in the nation giving the team an advantage when it
comes time to look at their ultimate goal of winning another national
championship. The opportunity to compete against top 20 teams in two nights during
a week sets the Big Ten conference a part from other conferences across the
country.

"The greatest
advantage that I've always felt about the Big Ten since we joined it is with
the existing structure of the NCAA tournament, you play back to back nights
against top 20 teams and it really prepares you for later on in the year," Rose
said. "If you're hosting an invitational you can really relax, but if you
travel it's a whole different atmosphere."

When it comes time
to prepare for conference play, there's a shift in the mindset going into each
match. With players who have been on national championship teams, Rose relies
on these players to step up into leadership roles in crucial ways.

"Experienced
players have working knowledge of competition in Big Ten and know how big all
of the teams are both at home and on the road. We have to depend on the veteran
players to not only do what they need to do but to be ready and assist the
younger players to help make sure they're ready to come out of the gate
strong."

Senior Deja
McClendon has been on national championship teams and knows how to stay calm
under high-pressure situations. Sharing her experiences, the outside hitter
takes the approach of taking care of her own emotions and making sure they
reflect positively for the younger players.

"A lot of helping
(the underclassmen) is based on how you are and how you act," McClendon said.
"If I stay smiling even though we're losing then the freshman think okay we're
good, we don't need to worry as opposed to if we were to freak out. Whenever
they have questions, we are the first people they ask because we've been
through it before and we try to give them pointers that we've learned."

Taking guidance
from McClendon is redshirt freshman Prieto Cerame. Since the upperclassmen have
had up to three years competing against the same teams, they have a better idea
of what to expect and how to approach the weekend.

"It helps a lot
because the upperclassmen have already played against these teams and tell us
how it's going to be," Prieto Cerame said. "They help in the sense that they
don't see it any differently, they just know that no matter what we have to be
at our best. It's just go time now."

This weekend as
they open conference play against no. 15 Michigan State and no. 10 Michigan,
the Nittany Lions will experience playing against highly athletic teams ready
to compete.

"Both teams have a
great roster coming back from last year," Rose said. "Michigan made it to the
final four. They're playing great and they have a great setter and all-American
outside hitters. They only replaced one player. Michigan State is an incredible
physical team. Both are good home or away so we'll have to be ready to play."